Passed.... or Failed???

Ben filmed the drop in slow motion... too funny!

Pretty cool! Now you just need to repeat that 10 more times to simulate the way that UPS treats fragile packages. 

Now, if you only had a gorilla and a cage...

Okay, I'll buy that one for $79.95. 

When my son was in grade school, he had a project where we had to pack a raw egg and have it survive a 5' high drop. We nailed it. A fun project.

enginEErjon posted:

Pretty cool! Now you just need to repeat that 10 more times to simulate the way that UPS treats fragile packages. 

And also drop it for both cases of  the "up" end facing down and sideways. 

I am sure the traditional shippers take as much heed to which end should be up as they do the Fragile marking.  (which for us non-business shippers, the general consensus seems to be the markings will make no difference in the way it's handled - maybe the wood box makes the difference?  Maybe the bulk and heft of the wood box means it won't see the conveyor belt systems that are so damaging to packages?)

Then again, does TW TrainWorx use the standard shipping carriers for these(UPS, FedEx, etc.), or something else?

-Dave

Very nice, but the landing distributed the force across the entire bottom of the crate.  Suggest for a more realistic test drop it once on each of the eight corners from the height of an average loading dock, about four feet, and get back to us.

Pete

ps - A crate like that most likely goes motor freight.

imo, never mark anything Fragile.

it lets people know what is inside is more important then stuff not marked and humans will be humans.

think about the time you were told don't touch that it is hot!

Bought the wife 20 pieces of heirloom fine china (pattern not produced anymore) to add to her set.  Shipped USPS on their special and more expensive "fragile handling" category (not supposed to be dumped in hoppers or handled roughly).  Arrived in pieces.  Couldn't be replaced.  Took me over six months to get my $600 insurance from the US Post office.  So much for "fragile".

BTW; the wife appreciated the effort; she actually felt sorry for me.

Drop it six more times stood on ends, drop on corners, kick it a few times, and finally jump up and down on top of it (with spiked heels). This may simulate how stuff gets piled on top.

That would be a more accurate test of how the shippers handle stuff.

I've had stuff that said "lay flat" and "do not stand on end". When I opened my door to get the package (usually left in the rain) when the doorbell rang, it's standing up on end. I don't know if they can't read, or simply just don't care???

At most places I worked (manufacturing), we tested our products in their shipping containers by dropping them from about four feet onto asphalt, to simulate a drop from a truck or a dock. We also shipped products to the east and west coasts, and had them returned to us for inspection.

There was one test that was rather demanding - hospital beds - and our products were the motors and controls that raised and lowered portions of the bed. Our customer, the bed manufacturer, would test the beds (with motors, controls, etc.) by pushing them down a flight of steps. Evidently, such a fall was not uncommon when beds were being moved around from one floor to the next. This was not a test of packaging, but a test of how much mishandling could a product endure.

For about three years, 20 years ago, I manufactured read-to-fly radio control giant-scale airplanes. These could have up to a 10-ft wingspan and weigh 50 lb. While most were either picked up or delivered in person, I shipped a number of them. The crates ranged from 4' x 3' x 6' to 4' x 4' x 8'. For transporting and shipping, the wings were removable, and sometimes the horizontal stab was also removable. Only once was there minor damage done to a 1" square aluminum spar. According to my customer, the crate was dropped during unloading from the delivery truck, landed on a corner (of course). and although there was some external damage to the crate, the airplane sustained minimal, easily repairable damage. Evidently, the crate slipped off the dolly used to slide it down the ramp when it was at the top of the ramp.

This was a test that I would have preferred had not happened, but when it did happen it gave me reassurance of my packaging.

Alex

Cool. I usually drop something after I remove it from the box...........